[charlied1]

Hi,I have an hp pavilion dv9000 it has the 32bit windows vista o.s. I was on the computer when it suddenly turned off and when i turned back on it says "Operating system not found" I went to the bios setup menu and there is no harddrive listed...Can anyone please help with this situation.

[BeeCeeBee]

It sounds like it is a real possibility that your Hard Drive is failing or has failed. Are you hearing any strange sounds such as a clicking or grating sound? Are there any beeps when you get to that message.

This is one of those times when having a good backup may be more important than getting it to boot. Have you taken any steps to protect your data?

[charlied1]

It is not making any unusual sounds,it just doesnt boot.I didnt back anything up,really nothing to loose.I just need to get it back up again.

[allheart55]

I would first, remove the side from the tower and make sure the cables to the hard drive and the motherboard are securely
connected. If they are connected properly, your hard drive has more than likely failed.

[charlied1]

its a laptop

[BeeCeeBee]

Well while it is possible that something came loose in a laptop that is just one more indication that it is the drive.

[Dalo Harkin]

Normally when it says OS is not found it means that the BIOS cannot pick up the HDD (due to it failing, disconnected etc) but its normally that its not in the boot device order - so within the BIOS boot order it should be:-
1st boot device HDD-0
2nd CD/DVDROM
3rd floppy/removable media

just check that HDD is at the top of the list

[charlied1]

Thats just it though,it dont show the hdd in the bios as an option.I bout ready to throw this thang in the yard(LOL)

[Dalo Harkin]

Then the cable is loose, or the drive has died

Not what you want to hear, but it more than likely one of the two, especially as it was so sudden, did you drop the lappy or knock it?

[charlied1]

no,it was sitting on the desk and suddenly turned off only to come back on with this error message.....but here goes the stupid question,What cable? (LOL)

[Match]

Quote

its a laptop

Quote

Then the cable is loose, or the drive has died

Quote

but here goes the stupid question,What cable? (LOL)

Yes Dalo what Cable? you working from memory again and not reading the threads

Probably not got a cable as its a laptop and the HDD will plug straight into the motherboard, which there is an outside chance that removing it and putting it back just might get it to work but from what you say I think it's dead, and will need a replacement unit, and if you didn't follow the instruction manual and create a set of recovery disks and keep them safe you will also have to contact the manufacturer and purchase a set of recovery disks to reload the OS.

[BeeCeeBee]

I think what Dalo is saying is that the connection between the MOBO and the HDD inside the laptop may be faulty. While laptop Dard Drives normally just fit into a housing built in, it still has to be connected to the motherboard in some manner and presumably that will be a cable. While changing a a hard drive is normally pretty straight forward on a laptop, if the problem lies with the connection then you will need to take the thing apart and that is normally something you want to do unless you have some experience.

Your bigger problem may be with the Operating System. Unless you have discs you will lose the recovery partition that is on the Hard Drive. Just as a word of warning, that is why full image backups are always a good idea. Separate partitions on the Hard drive have become the manufacturers norm and then work just fine for everything except when the drive itself fails.

(EDIT) OK I was typing this while match was also typing. However since everything I write is a collectors item, I will just leave it. )

[Dalo Harkin]

Granted my memory is not as young as it once was and seeing into the future doesn't help it's life expectancy

http://www.google.co...iw=1276&bih=839

Looks like a ribbon to me, weird eh

[Match]

I will admit that I have limited Laptop experience and if I get my way it won't be expanding much in the foreseeable future but the few I have looked at were more of a plug in unit

http://www.fonerbooks.com/laptop_1.htm

[DirtyPolo]

Try this link guys

http://www.insidemyl...avilion-dv9000/

Admittedly the hard drive itself just slots in, but the socket it slides into is then connected to the motherboard via a ribbon cable that can be accessed by taking various pieces of the laptop apart.

Please remember that by taking the laptop apart, you will generally void any warranty left on it.

Interestingly, the link above shows the disassembly of a dv9000, and shows it as having 2 hard drives. Is this the case with yours too?

[charlied1]

so what are the odds of both hdd going down at the same time

[DirtyPolo]

Well after reviewing the link again, it seems there are 2 hard drives spaces but depending on the exact model of your laptop, you might only have one installed. Easy way to check is to open the two drive covers and see if one is empty.

[charlied1]

I opened it up ...it has 2

[DirtyPolo]

Ok then it looks like the drive with your OS on, drive 1, I expect. Is dead or problematical. If that is the case then chances are there is a recovery partition on the second drive.

In the BIOS, is the second drive listed?

[charlied1]

I dont mind changing the hdd but i just curious how can i no for sure that is the problem,I made a mini xp disk and booted it from that.It does not list any hard drives